About Time
by Tinyniel
Summary: Harry has finally realised how he feels about Gin, only to find her dating Colin. Is it too late, though? Har/Gin (possibly Ron/Her) Fluffy. First fiction, plz R&R.*FINISHED*
1. A nudge in the right direction

Disclaimer: Everything but the plot belongs to JK Rowling.  Please don't sue me...

Please be nice, it's my first fiction. Thank you everyone who's reviewed, means a lot to me. I've applied some grammer changes, but it's still the same story. Reviews are still accepted with open arms... Enjoy.

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Chapter 1 - A nudge in the right direction 

Harry was nervous. More nervous than he had ever been. The times he had faced Voldemort, the Quidditch game against Slytherin in his 3rd year, the tri-wizard tournament. None of them compared to what he was about to do. 

The common room was nearly empty except for him, Ron, Hermione and Ginny. Hermione and Ron were bickering, as usual. They had an essay due for History of Magic, and Hermione was refusing to let Ron copy any of hers. Usually, Harry would have tried to act the part of peace negotiator, but today his mind was on something completely different. 

Ginny was curled up in a chair by the fireplace. In her lap lay her Potions book, and her face bore a look of pure despair. 'She looks cute when she's despaired,' Harry thought to himself, as he had done many times that term. It hadn't really occurred to him before, how pretty she was. Not until that summer.

The Weasley's had again saved Harry from spending his holiday being bullied by the Dursley's. It seemed every year he spent at Hogwarts made them hate him even more. But Ron had come to his aid again, and he had spent a delightful summer at the Burrow, glad to see that everything was as usual there, despite the return of Voldemort. Only everything wasn't quite as usual. Ginny wasn't who she had been. She wasn't Ron's shy little sister anymore, Harry quickly noted. She didn't spill anything around him, and when he talked to her she didn't go flushing red anymore. Ginny had grown up, grown confidence, and with a touch of disappointment Harry noted that she seemed to have grown out of her childish crush on him. Ron confirmed his suspicions; "She been sending owls to Colin all summer." Against his own will, Harry found himself surprisingly hurt by this. He'd had a good job hiding it from Ron, who seemed to think Harry should be overjoyed by the news. "Maybe they'll be so busy with each other they'll have no time for you." That, was exactly what Harry was afraid of.

He had never dared to admit it to himself, but he had started rather liking Ginny's attention. She always seemed to like him, no matter how many school rules he broke or Qudditch games he lost. Spending the summer at the Burrow had given Harry that final nudge he'd needed to realise that he was in love with Ginny. Sadly, the nudge had come a little too late.

Harry watched her as she sat there, mumbling ingredients to herself in order to memorize them. He'd shut out Ron and Hermione's quarrel, and forgotten all about the essay in front of him. Ginny had that effect on him and, despite the fact that it made it impossible for him to do his homework, Harry wouldn't have traded the feeling for anything.

"Harry, snap out of it!" Ron's voice made him jump. "Huh?" he asked, quickly turning to his friend. Ron eyed him suspiciously. "What was that all about?" Harry shook his head. "Off in my own little world for a second," he assured Ron, who still looked suspicious. "Really, I just drifted." "Right then," Ron shrugged. "I'm going to bed. You coming?" Harry shook his head. "I need to finish this, or McGongagall will turn me into a toad." Ron's eyes searched Harry's face, but he didn't say anything more than "night then" before he disappeared up the stairs, still arguing with Hermione.

Harry swallowed hard a couple of times. "Now or never, Harry," he said quietly to himself, and got up from his chair. Ginny didn't even look up from her book until Harry had sat down across from her. "Yeah?" she asked, looking at him curiously. Harry tried to calm down. "Well, I just wanted to… ask you if you needed any help with that." 'Damn' he thought to himself. She shook her head, making her red hair practically dance. 'God, she's beautiful' Harry though, but quickly pushed that aside. "No, not really," Ginny said. "Colin's pretty good at Potions." Harry's heart sank a little at the mention of Colin's name. "But it was sweet of you to ask," Ginny added, seeming to notice the change in his face. Harry had lost his nerve. "Well… er, good-night then," he said, getting up. "Don't stay up too late. Don't want Snape catching you yawning in class." She smiled, making his heart skip several beats. "No worries, Harry," she assured him. "Night." He seemed to have run out of words, and just made for the dormitories. "Way to go, Harry," he muttered to himself, feeling completely useless. 

Ginny eyed him as he made his way up the stairs. She almost felt sorry for him. It had been clear to her for a while that Harry's view on her had changed, and this had not been the first time they'd had a strange conversation. Ginny felt almost certain that her little plan had worked.

Colin had been in on it right away, being the good friend that he was. Though Ginny half suspected he had agreed on pretending to be her boyfriend partly because it meant spending more time with Harry. None the less, the plan had worked better than she had ever imagined. Harry had seemed jealous since the first day of school, and she had more than once caught him giving her and Colin longing glances. But she had to wait for him to make the first move, and that proved to be a longer wait than she had counted on. "Boys," she sighed, snapping her book shut.


	2. Boys you have to do everything for them

Chapter 2 – Boys... You have to do everything for them 

The next day Harry avoided Ginny best he could. Mostly because he didn't think he could stomach seeing her and Colin, but also because he felt like he had made a complete fool of himself the night before. It had been about the fiftieth time he had tried to tell Ginny how he felt, only to fail at the last minute. 'Boy-who-lived my arse,' he thought to himself. He couldn't even tell the girl he loved how he felt about her, and as far as he could see that was much more important than a stupid scar on his forehead.

It was impossible for Harry to concentrate on anything that day. All he could think about was how close he had been to telling Ginny everything the night before, and then he had ended up blowing it again. He hardly noticed Snape's comments in Potions, and his attempt to transfigure his textbook into a brick and back was disastrous. It was now missing several pages, and was dead heavy. 

"What is it with you today?" Ron demanded after Harry had spent two periods of Divination staring blankly into his crystal ball, where he was secretly convinced he had seen 'Ginny' spelled out in smoke. "Nothing," Harry tried to assure him, but his friend wasn't fooled that easily. "OK then; who is it?" For a second Harry wondered just how obvious he had been the past three months. "No one." he muttered, hoping his face wasn't as red as it felt. "I'm just tired… and my scar hurts." The last bit wasn't a complete lie, but Harry knew Ron hadn't believed a word he'd said. "Have it you way then," Ron sighed, sounding slightly miffed.

There were two perfectly good reasons why Harry hadn't told Ron about his feelings for Ginny. One; Ron probably wouldn't believe it. And two; if he did, he would never speak to Harry again. Ron was slightly overprotective of his little sister, and was far from pleased with her and Colin being at item, though he'd never admit to it. Harry didn't even want to think about how he would react if Harry started dating her. 

But not having anyone to talk to about it was starting to take its toil on Harry. There was no use in asking Hermione; she was busier than ever this year. His only other solution was Hagrid, but he had no way of sneaking down there without Ron tagging along. There was of course the invisibility cloak, but then he'd have to sneak out at night and the reprimand he was sure to get from Hagrid was the last thing he needed right now. He had thought of sending an owl to Sirius, but his godfather he more important matters to deal with. Harry couldn't bring himself to send him a letter saying:'_Hi Sirius. Sorry to bother you, but could you take a break from fighting Lord Voldemort for a second and help me with my love life?_' No, Harry was going to have to sort this out for himself.

The last class that day was Care of Magical creatures. As Harry and Ron made their way down the stairs into the Great Hall, Harry could help but notice Ginny and Colin standing in a corner. An unpleasant feeling started spreading inside him, and unintentionally he sped up to get out of there as quickly as possible. He didn't notice how fast he was walking until he was well out of the castle and found that Ron was no longer besides him. "What was that all about?" Ron panted as he caught up with him. Harry didn't say anything. 

Ginny had seen Harry enter the Great Hall. She had seen him notice her and Colin, and she had seen him hurry out of there like someone had put a Speedus charm on him. "Colin," she said quietly. He nodded. "I need you to break up with me," Ginny instructed him. "And we need to make sure Harry sees it." Colin sighed. "Right. So, do you want me to break your heart or something?" Ginny thought about it for a second. "Yeah, I think that'll work," she said. "OK," Colin shrugged. "I'll figure out something nasty in Divination." Not surprisingly, Colin was taking the same subjects as Harry. He pecked Ginny on the cheek, and hurried off to class. 'Boys,' Ginny thought again as she walked to Muggle Studies. 'You have to do everything for them.'


	3. Breaking up

Note: Thanks to everyone who's reviewed. *special thanks to Naavi for helpful hints* Keep 'em coming everyone... 

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Chapter 3 – Breaking up   
are of Magical Creatures was no better than the rest of Harry's classes that day. And it didn't help that Draco spent most of the class making remarks about how Harry's only two fans seemed to have forgotten about him now. It appeared this was his new favourite joke. "Bound to notice the bluff I guess," Malfoy loudly told his girlfriend Pansy. "Though she's remarkably slow, even for a Weasley." Before Ron could react, Hagrid had grabbed him by the collar. "E's not worth it, Ron." Ron's face was redder than his hair, but he had no way of getting out of Hagrid's grip. "You just wait, Malfoy," he muttered. "I'll get you one of these days."  
Draco was watching Ron, laughing with the rest of the Slytherins. What he didn't notice was Harry poking his wand carefully out of his robes, pointing it at him. "Muffelus," Harry mumbled, and a second later it was the Gryffindor who were laughing. Harry had muffled Draco, who looked very stupid as he was screaming madly but making no sound. "Alright now, who did that?" Hagrid asked sternly, though anyone could see he was having severe problems keeping a straight face. No one owed up, and Hagrid told Pansy to take Draco to the hospital wing. Ron practically beamed at Harry.  
"That was brilliant. Thanks," he whispered as they made their way back to the castle for dinner. Harry just shrugged. "Couldn't let him say those things about Gin… you guys." Harry knew he'd corrected himself too late. Thankfully, Ron didn't seem to have noticed.  


The news that Draco was robbed of his voice for a while was the topic at every table at dinner. Seamus and Dean both congratulated Harry on finally shutting the brat up, but Harry denied having anything to do with it. Hermione was furious ("Harry, you could have been expelled!") Professor Snape tried to prove him guilty by using the Enervate charm on Harry's wand, but Harry had been careful to use it for something else and thus Snape had no proof.  
After a while Harry got some peace to eat. He glanced over at Ginny, regretting it the second he saw that Colin was there too. But they didn't look their usual, cute selves. Ginny looked like she was on the verge of crying, and to Harry's great amazement Colin didn't seem to care. Trying not to be too obvious, Harry kept an eye on them. I didn't take long before Ginny got up and walked out. Ron was busy chatting to Neville, so Harry got up quietly and went after Ginny.   
He found her sitting on the stairs in the Entrance Hall, and there was no doubt she was crying. "Ginny, what's the matter?" Harry asked softly, sitting down next to her. Ginny flung her arms around him, leaning her head against his chest. "Colin," she sobbed. "He said… he said he didn't want us to be together anymore. He broke up with me." The last sentence nearly drowned in Ginny's uncontrollable sobbing. Harry, amazed at the information he had just received, put his arm around her. "C'mon, let's go up the common room," he suggested. Ginny wasn't able to do anything but nod a reply.  
As he lead her through the halls, Harry couldn't help but think how good it felt to have her in his arms. But looking down on her that feeling was soon pushed aside. How could he even think of taking advantage of a situation like this?  


The common room was empty, as Harry had hoped. He placed Ginny in a chair next to the fireplace, and roaming his pockets he found some sweets. "Here," he said, offering her a Wizzing Wizbee. She accepted it, but didn't eat it. "Thanks Harry," she muttered, looking down at her feet. "I can't believe Colin would…" She stopped, clearly on the verge of tears again. 'Neither can I,' Harry thought. 'He must be a bloody idiot.' He didn't say that, though. "If you want, I'll kick his arse for you," he offered instead, and Ginny smiled slightly. "Or maybe I could muffle him. I seem to have gotten the hang of that." Ginny suppressed a chuckle. "Thanks for that too Harry. Ron told me what…" She stopped, blushing, and so did Harry. Had Ron heard him correct himself after all? "Couldn't let him say those things about you," Harry said, hoping she would take the "you" personally. "Listen," he said, getting up and seating himself on the arm of her chair. "Colin has to be completely daft for letting go of you. Don't let him get you down, you're too good for the likes of him." He bent down slowly and kissed her forehead. She hugged him. "Thanks Harry," she whispered, but he just shrugged. "What are friends for?" he asked, smiling at her.  


At that moment Ron came in, followed by Hermione. "What's the matter?" he asked when he saw Ginny all cried-out. "Colin broke up with her," Harry explained, and Ron's eyes widened. "Wait 'til get hold of him, he'll wish he'd never…" Ron was too angry to complete the sentence. "Violence won't solve anything," Hermione said wisely, and Ginny nodded. "Besides, Harry's already offered to kick his arse," she giggled, not able to hold back her smile. Ron looked fondly at Ginny, and hugged her. Hermione signalled to Harry that they should leave the two of them alone, and reluctantly Harry dragged upstairs while Hermione disappeared to the library.  



	4. Moment of truth

Chapter 4 – Moment of truth 

Ginny had never thought that part of her plan could fail so utterly. She had been certain that her broken heart would have give Harry the chance to tell her how he felt. But he had been the perfect gentleman, which Ginny would have noted as cute under any other circumstances. Now it annoyed her. And she didn't have much time to talk to Harry over the next few days, as she was constantly talking her brother's out of punching Colin's lights out. 

Harry was proud of himself. He'd had every possibility to take advantage of Ginny's vulnerability, but he had pushed those ideas aside the minute they presented themselves. Still, now more than ever he wanted to talk to her, tell her how he felt, but sadly she had no time for him. Fred and George were just as furious with Colin as Ron was, and poor Ginny had quite the job making sure they didn't put nasty curses on him when he wasn't looking. Harry wasn't quite sure what he wanted to do to Colin. Part of him wanted to chuck the little prick off the Astronomy Tower, but another part of him felt like hugging him. Since neither seemed a very good idea, Harry just did what he always had; he ignored him.

That Friday night Harry sat alone in the common room. Hermione, no surprise, was at the library and she had dragged Ron with her. Harry was supposed to be working on a planet chart for Divination, but he couldn't be bothered. There was always the rest of the weekend. 

He leaned back in the comfortable chair, staring at the fireplace. Only two weeks left and Christmas would come. He looked forward to it. Ron was staying so Harry guessed Ginny would to, and that made him long for it even more.

As he was sitting there, the portrait hole opened and Ginny came in. Harry was about to greet her with a smile when he saw who she was with. Colin. Harry's heart sank a little, thinking that the two were back together, but a second later his worries were over. "Forget it, Colin!" Ginny shouted. "You've blown it now. Get out of my sight." Colin did look remorseful, but Ginny didn't budge. "Go!" she said again, and this time Colin did. He went back out the door, dragging his feet slightly. 

Ginny dumped herself into the chair next to Harry. "What was that about?" Harry asked, hoping the anxiety he felt wasn't rubbing off on his voice. Ginny just shook her head. "Boys," she sighed. "They're all the same. Think if they look at you with those puppy-dog eyes, you'll just forgive and forget." Harry had to smile. "Surly there are exceptions to every rule," he said, and she smiled. "No, not this one. And you're lousy at taking hints too." She pierced him with a look that made Harry shiver slightly.

"Er, Ginny," he started. "There's something I need to tell you." He'd worked out the speech a million times in his head, in case he'd ever need it. But now that it came to it, and Ginny's curious brown eyes looked expectantly at him, he couldn't remember a word. "Well… I…" Relax Harry, breathe. 

"Finally" Ginny thought.

Harry took a deep breath. He looked at her, and her eyes looked even more puzzled now. Harry coughed, trying to buy himself some time. 'This is no use,' he thought, and gathering up what little courage he felt he had left, he spoke: "There's something I've been wanting to say all year, Gin… I… you." Courage was gone again. "Harry, what is it?" Ginny asked, hoping she sounded helpful. Encouraging. Harry shook his head. "Can't find the words," he mumbled, just loud enough for her to hear. "Maybe you could show me," Ginny suggested. 'How?' Harry thought. Then it hit him. "Close your eyes," he said. "What?" Ginny looked confused. "Just close them." She did, but not before giving him a very suspicious glance. 

Now that her eyes weren't searching his face anymore, Harry relaxed slightly. 'Right, here goes,' he thought, taking another deep breath. He didn't even know if he was going to get it right, it occurred to him as he leaned closer to Ginny's face. It couldn't be that hard, could it? But what if he… There was no more time to think, as Harry's lips gently touched Ginny's. The touch startled her a little, but it didn't take long for her to get over that. Harry carefully put his hand on her cheek, caressing it. Ginny ran her fingers through his hair. Neither of them wanted it to end, but eventually Harry pulled away. He didn't quite now what to say, having expected Ginny to push him off, asking him what the hell he thought he was doing. But she just smiled at him. "About time you came around," she said, and Harry stared at her. "Don't think I haven't figured you out." "Figured me out? What…?" Harry was completely lost. Ginny just kept smiling. "Guess it's time I fess up; Me and Colin were never together." Harry's jaw dropped, but Ginny didn't notice. "I was trying to make you jealous, and it didn't take long for it to work." He was blushing heavily, and he knew it. "I've been trying to tell you all term," he said apologetically. "Then we have something in common," Ginny pointed out. "I've been trying to get you to tell me all term."

Harry stood up for no other reason than the fact that he couldn't sit still. How could she know? He had been so carefull. No, now that he thought about it, he really hadn't. "I've really been that obvious?" he asked Ginny, and she giggled. "You have no idea," she smiled. Harry just shook his head. "Then how come Ron hasn't…?" Ginny smiled. "My brother has things to worry about himself, in case you haven't noticed." 

She got up and walked over to Harry. "I believe you were trying to tell me something, Harry," she said softly, and Harry snapped out of the trance-like state he had been in. "Ginny, I love you," he whispered, and kissed her. "OH NO YOU DON'T!" a voice bellowed.


	5. Happy endings

Chapter 5 – Happy endings 

Both Harry and Ginny jumped at the sound of Ron's voice. Harry turned, only to see Ron standing in the open door, face red with anger. Hermione was right behind him, but she only looked surprised and, Harry though, faintly pleased. "What the hell are you doing?" Ron shouted. "Kissing," Ginny said, but that was clearly the wrong answer. Ron looked too angry to speak, and he only managed: "My little sister... best friend..." Harry didn't dare try and explain. This was exactly how he had expected Ron to react, and it was the only thing he had not yet worked out how to deal with. Part of him had hoped Ron would be OK about it, but now he saw how stupid that had been.

"Oh, calm down Ron," Hermione said. "Calm down!" Ron shouted. "My best friend is kissing my little sister, and you're telling me to calm down! How can I calm down if." Both Harry and Ginny looked on in amazement as Hermione stopped Ron talking in the last way anyone, including Ron himself, had expected; She kissed him. Ron just stared at her. "See, not so bad, is it?" Hermione asked as if nothing had happened, though her cheeks were burning red. "Now, Harry has been in love with Ginny since this summer, and if you hadn't been so daft you would have noticed. And Ginny's done a pretty good job pretending to be dating Colin so Harry would get jealous." Ron's mouth fell open, and so did Ginny's. "How did you know?" Ginny asked. Hermione just smiled. "Just because I have my head in a book all the time, it doesn't mean I don't pick up on a thing or two." 

Since Ron seemed to have calmed down, Harry attempted to explain. "Hermione's right," he said. "I have been in love with Gin since this summer. I couldn't tell you, and I think you understand why. But I'm not trying to take advantage of her, I really love her." He looked at Ron, half expecting to be cursed, but Ron just smiled. "All right then," he said. "But if you hurt her, I'll..." "Hunt me down and kick my arse?" Harry asked, and Ron laughed. "Exactly." 

"C'mon, Ron. Let's leave them alone," Hermione suggested. Ron did seem to get it at first, but then he  looked at her, and she winked at him. "Oh, right," he said. "I'll just... we have homework." He followed Hermione up the stairs while Harry and Ginny giggled. 

"Well, now that that's taken care of," Harry smiled. "Where were we?" "Right about here," Ginny whispered, and kissed him.

-the end-


End file.
